Low-Cost Philosophy

The low price of The Kelly Letter is a mystery to many visitors. On this page, I’ll explain why I charge so little when the investment industry suggests that I charge up to ten times more.

The usual way that investment services are marketed looks something like this:

I know because I used to market my print newsletter precisely that way. There was a standard price that was always slashed to 50 percent off if people acted now. There were free reports. There were incentives to sign-up for two years to save even more — good today only, of course. I’ve used all the direct marketing gimmicks to boost my business.

But you know what? I realized that I don’t like treating people that way. I myself grew tired of it everywhere I turned. One day, a restaurant manager handed me a coupon for 25 percent off my next meal. I was elated and wanted to come back. Later, I saw the same deal advertised in the paper and a friend mentioned to me that even the menus had been changed to show the “usual” price crossed out and the discount price in bold. In short, the coupons were a farce. The food was always priced that low. I didn’t appreciate the trickery.

A favorite ski resort sent me a $10 off coupon. When I drove there, they charged me $10 for parking when it had been free before. Some bargain, eh?

We all know that the price we see on a new car is never the price we pay. Have you wondered why not? Is it a rule that we have to be lied to and tricked whenever we buy something?

Then one day, I received a mailer from a neighborhood car mechanic that said he ran a small shop, but that he used to work for a global car company and was every bit as good as the gleaming dealer shops, and one third cheaper. To prove it to me, he offered an oil change, air filter change, wiper fluid refill, 21-point inspection, and full car wash for a guaranteed rate of $39, all inclusive, even the tax. I knew the standard price at other shops to be $59, plus tax. Then I read something else that showed me he understood what I and so many others were tired of experiencing. He wrote, “And I won’t try to sell you anything else.” That did it for me. I went.

My car was serviced by a friendly man in a clean uniform while I waited in a comfortable room and drank a cup of juice and ate a cookie. When my car was finished, I went to the register expecting something to go wrong. I had the mailer in my pocket, highlighted and ready for argument. That’s how conditioned I am to being ripped off. In this case, I was dealing with honesty. The register rang up to $39 even. I handed over two $20s and got a crisp dollar back. And you know what? He didn’t try to sell me anything else.

I left and thought, “This is how I want to run my business.”

That’s why you find the low price of The Kelly Letter in plain sight. No gimmicks. You want to know the cost? It’s $19.97 a month, all inclusive. You don’t have to act now (though I hope you do!). It’ll be the same price tomorrow, and next month.

You don’t need to read 5,000 words about the end of the financial world and how I’m going to save you from it, and show how you can not just avoid catastrophe but profit while others go bankrupt. Does anybody really fall for that stuff anymore? Sadly, yes. But not here, for several reasons:

First, the financial world isn’t ending. It didn’t end when that sensational hook was first used forty years ago, nor thirty years ago, nor twenty, nor ten, nor one, nor now when I still read variations on the theme.

Second, it’s dishonest to claim to have all the answers. Even the chairman of the Federal Reserve doesn’t have all the answers. I don’t have them, either. I’m a top-ranked market forecaster and a bestselling financial author, and you know how I feel looking at the markets every day? Nervous. There are a lot of very smart people trying to make money in the markets, and at any given time half of them are going about it the wrong way. Markets are mysterious and filled with enough risk to keep any clear thinker humble. To claim some kind of special insight into Doomsday’s calendar is laughable.

Third, that’s just not how investing works. It’s a slow, methodical discipline that is best approached with a level head, not cries of disaster or champagne-popping claims of riches. Around here, I rack up steady returns over time. This is not the lottery.

After constantly looking over your shoulder to see how you’re getting ripped off, you should feel that you’ve found an oasis of integrity here. Like the mechanic, I can say that I’m every bit as good as the expensive guys, just more affordable. To prove it to you, I’m offering my newsletter at $19.97 a month, all inclusive, with the ability to cancel future payments yourself.